Supreme Court declines to review prayer case

WASHINGTON (ABP) -- The U.S. Supreme Court declined Jan. 17 to
reconsider a lower court’s decision barring a North Carolina county from
invoking prayers in Jesus’ name at twice-a-month meetings of its main
governing body.

The court declined without comment to accept an appeal of Forsyth County, N.C., v. Joyner, et al,
leaving in place a July decision by the 4th Circuit U.S. Court of
Appeals that policies of the county commission violated the
Establishment Clause because the prayers were overwhelmingly sectarian.

The Baptist Joint Committee for Religious Liberty filed a brief
in the case arguing that while the Constitution permits the use of
“legislative prayer” to solemnize public gatherings, such prayers must
be non-sectarian and not be used to proselytize or favor one religion
over another.